Crunching profit numbers and evaluating surprises might appear a good option in the ongoing reporting cycle but these do not ensure that the profits are being efficiently channeled to the reserves to fund future growth. Because even a profit-making company can have a deficiency of cash flow and might go bankrupt while meeting its obligations.

Therefore to ensure investing in the right stocks, one must look at a company’s proficiency in generating cash flows. This is because cash is the most indispensable factor for any company. It gives strength and vitality and is the key for its existence, development and success.

In any business, cash moves in and out, it is net cash flow that indicates how much money the company is actually generating or burning. Having positive cash flows indicates enhanced liquidity, giving the company more power for debt repayment, expenses, dividend payouts, stock buyback and finally reinvestment in business. On the other hand, negative cash flow implies that a company’s liquid assets are decreasing, resulting in reduced flexibility to support these moves.

However, having a positive cash flow merely does not secure a company’s future growth. To ride on the growth curve, a company must have its cash flow increasing because that indicates management’s efficiency in regulating its cash movements and less dependency on outside financing for running its business.

Therefore, this earnings season and beyond, don’t look at profits only before picking stocks. Make sure to look for stocks with dependable and increasing cash flows.

And that's what we're screening for today…

For the rest of this Screen of the Week article please visit Zacks.com at: https://www.zacks.com/stock/news/291937/buy-4-stocks-with-rising-cash-flows-this-earnings-season

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Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material.

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